SiriusXM Canada Asks for Financial Relief

Saying it’s losing money at a “disturbing rate,” SiriusXM Canada has asked the Canadian Radio-Television and Telecommunications Commission for a 90% break on its mandatory artistic development payments.

The current company formed in 2011 when two former rivals — Sirius Canada and XM Canada — merged. The company had assumed it would post a C$65 million annual profit by the end of the license period, the satcaster said in a filing to the CRTC, reports the Globe and Mail.

SiriusXM Canada posted a C$2.6 million loss in its most recent quarter. At the same time, the company has paid $52 million to the CRTC in the past seven years, according to the report.

The satcaster’s license is up for renewal and SiriusXM would like to renegotiate the terms to save the company millions of dollars a year as it faces steady competition from traditional radio and increasing competition from Internet audio services.